bulldog1935

I haven't needed to be in that market for a long time, but there are some very good spool options for Daiwa from Ray's Studio, Roro and AMO. I went 34-mm Daiwa SV, 3 reels, all the spools interchange. @Kites R4 Skyfishing - I'll send you a pm w/ link to AMO store, and you can check there for what's available for your different reel models.

Electrical tape leaves forever messy residue. I use PE/acrylic film (mylar) tape, which sticks better and doesn't leave residue. I also use it for seizing knots on kayak trolley lines, and the tape lasts as long as the sailcord. When you want to take it off, it peels off - leaves Zero residue. It's also 1/4 thickness of electrical tape. No need for any solvent. Why - why schtupp with mess and solvent. How much of that solvent vapor pressure is going to diffuse into and break down your reel lube. Everything about this tape is superior - it's thinner, it sticks better, doesn't slide or creep, it's stronger, lasts forever, comes off when you want - only when you want - and leaves Nothing behind. I hope this thing is on.

more show and tell, all my round reels matched with offset-handle rods. Ambassadeur combos 4600C Express on Smith 6' MH graphite frogger, 1/2 to 1 oz 4500C on Bright River 5' MM composite glass plugger, 1/4 to 3/4 oz 4500C on Smith 6'3" ML graphite finesse, 1/8 to 5/8 oz Isuzu reel combos Headhunters BC620SSS on Bright River 6'4" S-glass MM, 1/8 to 1 oz (paddle-tails, sight-fishing bunny shrimp) Smith Plugger on 5'6" Smith S-glass ML finesse, 1/8 to 5/8 oz BC720SSS on Headhunters (Tenryu) 6'4" IM6 MH, 1/4 to 2 oz (dog-walking) @GreenPig this is my all time favorite hook keeper

I'll take care of my own handles, thanks. I don't want an I-shaped rubber (heavy) knob on a heavy handle, I don't want Daiwa raising the price trying to guess what I want.

looks like a bunch of us went shopping in Japan over the past week Zillion is a reel worth your extra attention.

Vanquish C2000S, F6 spool, 6-lb Toray X-thread Fluoro, works great. I have PE#0.6 on the stock spool. stock spool............................................................F6 spool

@BassSteve - that's a good question - most JDM rods cast their low-end rating extremely well. If it's a really high-modulus graphite, maybe not, medium modulus rod will very likely cast below it's low-end rating.

Moderate fast tip is a good description for most Japanese rods. On average, they're going to have a softer tip and stouter butt for the same rating. They like a progressive bend in their taper, and don't like thick, heavy para tips. This also gives them a wider lure range. Works out well, because I like rods this way, also.

The Japanese today are working glass casting rods the same way FFR heroes from the '70s were working fly rods. While this 3-power (MM) S-glass is marked down to 1/4 oz, I bought it specially to sight-fish 1/8 oz, and turn redfish at the boat, which it does perfectly. My next will be an IM6 to fish 1/4 oz, and dog-walk heavy plugs - the rod is rated 1/4 to 2 oz.

Careful, Fisher, Phillipson and St. Croix were making high-grade, lightweight glass rods in the '70s, these were lighter than the graphite that first followed - it would be nuts to compare them to EC Featherlite. Scotchply was the first move forward in oriented-fiber cloth, anyone who says he does better because of new materials has found his marketing Snow Job. The biggest difference between older casting rods and new will be the taper and lure weight range - bass rods in the 70s were para taper. In the rod lengths we want, you won't notice the weight difference, but will notice an advantage in the progressive taper. The first big advantage for graphite was pushing rod lengths out to 9' in heavy-line-weight fly rods. Many of these great mid-length, mid-weight fly rods aren't leaving my hands - their progressive tapers can't be duplicated in graphite or cane. Joe Fisher's glass rods are noted to be lighter than most other glass, and lighter than his graphite, because he never trusted graphite. Bill Phillipson hand-sorted his blanks and while both rods are marked 2-1/8 oz, the Royal Wand is lighter and the taper more crisp. Vince Cummings took St. Croix blanks, then hand-sanded and finish-polished to achieve the tapers he wanted. His astounding taper will fish 3-wt to 7-wt, and becomes a different rod with each line weight. It will also accurately cast the leader alone.

If I didn't get it across in my last post, everybody should have a progressive glass rod for their light end - especially kayak and river. Graphite rods will pretty much end at their low-end rating. But you don't have to chase bass with a Light stream trout rod. A progressive glass ML will fish the same stream trout weights, and still horse a big bass at your boat.

You can count on me to be a bad influence. '21 Plugger is my small-frame Isuzu-built reel - the small-frame reels are very happy in either bass or trout niches. The Smith Super Strike offset-handle rod makes a nice match, but isn't required with the small-frame reels - this reel would fish well on a straight-seat rod. Had it out earlier this week, and was fishing 2 to 3.5 g on the short glass rod (FO56), even though the rod is rated 5 to 14 g. The glass rod skip casts very well below its rated low end. That's an advantage to progressive glass - I have the longer graphite version with the same rating - 66SPX casts 4 g farther than I need, but 3 g under-loads the rod - at that point of under-load, your cast aim goes off too far in the direction you were swinging and, of course, skip-casting the light weight is right out. 66SPX sings with 4 g, but you're right on the cusp of what it will fish.

Thanks guys - Right lure color can make a difference, too - my second (redfish) photo above, I could tell from subtle wakes and jumping bait there were 200 redfish on my grassy shoal, and the flat is heavily fished by guides (there was a guide boat between my kayak and the pass - the direction the fish were heading for the tide swing). I went through four lure colors before finding the one that was the subtle blend color they would eat (bottom), then caught 7 on 12 casts. the two halves of the photo show reflected light and transmitted light. Above also wasn't a slot fish, but the combo was in the photo.

Right reel and Right rod. Only reel set-up that will fish my salt ML niche properly - I have two rods that fish it with aplomb, one 13Fishing $130, the other JDM Abu $250. (and another Zillion Silver Wolf set up the same)

my Real collection is 150GB of fish photos.

@Bankbeater - you might like visiting FFR forum Another Spin page You'll find interest in old glass rods, out of production reels, and trip reports where folks take their old tackle fishing. Also a good archive to search old tackle.

@FrnkNsteen - took me awhile to remember the initials of the inventor of the Stubcaster - EMM. The grandson picked them up again, and then sold the company. https://emmrod.com/ @A kid from Canada - in the '60s, ads like that in Popular Mechanics likely sold as much fishing tackle as Herters catalog. The first paddle-tail lures were imported and only sold from ads in Popular Mechanics. Into the '70s, Cabelas catalog only sold lure-making and rod-building supplies, and was the sole importer for DAM Quick reels.

Hi friend, that's a StubCaster - works pretty well, especially with that little Portage NLW, green-spot soft braid, and a slip bobber. Used to fish that when I took my daughters and their friends to the creek.

@Tennessee Boy - easy, you're paying US labor vs Mexico labor. Though off topic from the question, which was tech over 10 to 15 years. The difference in Carbon 4 (IM8) and Carbon 5 (IM9) is the specific modulus of the fibers used. Old = Obsolete is a marketing ploy, known to marketers as "The Snow Job" - if they can't convince you what you bought last year is obsolete, they can't sell you this year's new stuff. It has nothing to do with quality, but what you will swallow. I can think of lures I present more naturally with heavier IM6 and even S-glass, and catch more fish than the same lure fished on newer lighter-weight rods. In many ways, the lighter tackle is more fun to fish, but isn't always more productive.

Can't say anything about the models you picked, but the key in modern rods is getting weight down - they achieve the same strength and bulk modulus using less total material. Previously, rods were made using linear fiber held on a mandrel with a scrim wrap, and soaked in resin. Now they use fewer linear fibers, helical prepreg tape, nano resins. An MM IM6 rod weighed 5 ounces, while the same rod taper made with Toray prepregs is down to 3 ounces. Then as now, the quality comes from attention to detail, not the tech.

@FishTank The worst damage you could do is what I described in my post above. But this is something you need to do when you swap spools, and a good idea any time you're removing the palm plate. That said, I have no idea how they will regulate overall spool shim width on new Steez - would have to tinker with one.

I just changed the 3-(hard)-year Duel X-wire, PE#1.2, on my Zillion (Ray's SV spool). I went with Varivas Si-X (PE#1.2), which has 2 coatings, the hard silicone plus FEP teflon. I also didn't cut off the old line at the arbor knot, but joined them 10' out with double uni. When I was tying that knot, was really impressed with now much harder, smoother and rounder the Varivas Sea Bass than the essentially new condition Duel X-wire (old line) at the arbor end. The Varivas Si-X costs 3 times as much, but I don't care for 3+ reliable years (and the chance at another famous photo like the trout above).

Any time you change spools, you should always begin by opening the zero adjust knob. This protects the palm plate latch from closing damage, accounting for differences in spool spindle width. Reset for incipient spool side play.

I only own one rod where I can tell Steez is an ounce lighter than Zillion.